‘Love Island USA’ Star Charlie Georgiou Says It’s “Brutal” To Know That Hannah Will Continue Her Journey With Pepe: “I Was Robbed”

Hearts across America were broken when Charlie Georgiou was dumped from Love Island USA moments after Hannah Fields realized she only had eyes for him. Georgiou, who joined the Peacock series as a bombshell in Episode 2, was eliminated from the show in Episode 12 when America voted to couple up Hannah with new bombshell Pepe Garcia, leaving his fellow Islanders to vote him off out of the villa. While Hannah spent the night sobbing over his departure, she swiftly picked herself up and moved on with Pepe the next morning.

“I saw a little bit where they went on a date and after that, I just couldn’t watch it,” Charlie told Decider over a recent Zoom call when asked how he felt about Hannah and Pepe. “Part of me feels like it should have been me there.”

While Charlie said he “would never expect” Hannah to leave the villa with him, he also admitted that it “hurt” to know she would be moving on with another guy. “I knew that’s what would happen. You get forgotten in there. You’ve got to move on. It pains me, it sucks. I don’t think it’s how it should have been,” he said, noting that he was “robbed” of a “real Love Island experience.”

With Casa Amor on the horizon, fans have been calling on producers to put Charlie back in the villa. “Get me in there! I’m ready. Send me back in,” he said. Not only would the UK native want to see if Hannah “still wants to explore the guy that she originally chose,” but he also wants to confront the Islanders who voted for his elimination, namely Cierra Ortega and Amaya Espinal.

“I think I was just the easy vote for them. They didn’t want to have to deal with the wrath of their friends,” he speculated. “They didn’t vote for the guy that had the weakest connection. I think they just voted for the guy they thought would be the easiest to get rid of.”

When we caught up with Charlie, he also talked about his decision to audition for Love Island USA, the Huda Mustafa and Jeremiah Brown drama, and his guacamole recipe. Check out the full interview below.

---

DECIDER: What made you decide to audition for Love Island USA? And what was your reaction to hearing you’d be joining the show as a bombshell?

CHARLIE GEORGIOU: Funny story, actually. Last year, I had a holiday romance, situationship with an American girl from LA. During my time with her, she kept telling me about how Season 6 was popping off. Everybody knows the UK is known for Love Island, so she was like, “Have you seen our [version]?” And I was like, “Oh, that’s cool.” Anyways, the holiday romance left in a sad way. I was really cut up about it. I was hurt about it. She went back to America. I couldn’t progress, I really wanted to. While I was getting over that, I was like, “What should I do?” And I thought, “Why not just apply for Love Island Season 7?” I spoke to a casting agent on Instagram. I was like, “Can British people apply?” And she was like, “Yeah.” I applied and then it just continued and continued. After [some] time, I was getting over this girl and then also realizing that this could be a potential thing. When I finally found out I was coming to Fiji and then also found out that I was going as an early bombshell, I was just so blown away and grateful. I was like, “Wow, manifestation is real.” I was like, “Damn, this is crazy.” If this never happened with that girl that I was so upset about, I wouldn’t be here.

It’s like the butterfly effect! You and Hannah hit it off right away – I was really rooting for you guys. What was it about her that drew you in?

She was high-energy, she was funny, and I really loved her aesthetic – blonde [hair] and blue [eyes]. I was like,”Whoa, this is an all-American type girl.” She had a bit of a twang to her accent. We were just instantly into each other, we found a lot things [in common]. Other than attraction, we also would do little things, like we’d harmonize together and sing little bits – the bits you don’t see [in the show] and those little things that make it fun. I think that’s what it was – attraction and energy.

I was so bummed when America broke you and Hannah up – especially after you guys had just had that great conversation. Now that it’s been a few days, how are you feeling about that last chat? 

That chat is also condensed down. That chat was more than just a chat. It was a deep conversation. It was like the real Love Island experience that people tell you about. The girl or boy gets distracted, they get their head turned, but then in that moment they realize, “What I want is what I already have.” We really connected. It was beautiful. We spoke. We found out more things about each other on a deeper level. That conversation went on for a while and it was beautiful and we were so happy after it. I was like, “Wow, this is it. I’m gonna get to experience this real Love Island journey now. We’re gonna do this together. Whatever comes at us, okay. If we mess up along the way, it’s all part of the journey.” So, I was just ready for this journey and then it was just completely cut short in a tragic way, like, in a really brutal way. 

There’s been a lot of discourse over who’s to blame the most for your exit – Hannah for even entertaining Pepe, Amaya for voting for you, or Austin for choosing Taylor over Huda. Who do you think is most at fault?

At the end of the day, it wasn’t Hannah that voted to split me and her up. The votes are what sent me out of the villa that day. It was the votes. They could have saved me. They did not save me. It is what it is. I was disappointed. I was disappointed in Amaya’s vote and Cierra’s vote. Me and Hannah had literally comforted [Amaya] while she cried and while she was upset. She had the conversation with me, but she also had the conversation with Hannah, where it shows that she understood why I [expressed interest in exploring a connection with her]. Let’s be real, I didn’t do it because I wanted to. I did it because I was acting out of hurt and confusion. I’d just seen Hannah go back upstairs with Pepe and I’m thinking, “Well, what am I doing? What’s going on? I’m sitting here, it hurts. I, at least, deserve to surely explore.” But it backfired and she voted for me, which ultimately led to my dumping. 

Cierra [and I] came in this together and she knows how long I was trying to find a connection and how happy I was when I had it. At the end of the day, I think I was just the easy vote for them. They didn’t want to have to deal with the wrath of their friends. They didn’t vote for the guy that had the weakest connection. I think they just voted for the guy they thought would be the easiest to get rid of. 

Was there a part of you that wished Hannah left the villa with you?

Nah, I’ve heard this and at the end of the day, Love Island is such a unique, great experience that just because I was robbed of it, doesn’t mean she should be robbed of it, too. Secondly, [we were] just on the verge [of becoming closed off]. Maybe if we had another week or two, it would have been so solidified, maybe. But again, I would never expect someone to do that. It’s their life and it’s an experience. It never crossed my mind. It hurts now that even after those two days of fighting for her, you saw me pitch at the end, I fought for a speech. To know that she chose me but she has to continue this journey with the guy, it’s brutal, man. It’s brutal.

Were you surprised at how quickly Hannah seemed willing to move on with Pepe the morning after you left? And having seen the most recent episode, do you think there’s still a chance you two will reconnect after she leaves the villa?

I saw a little bit where they went on a date and after that, I just couldn’t watch it. It’s like,
“Why do I want to watch this? There’s no point in me watching this.” Part of me feels like it should have been me there. So, yeah, it did [surprise me]. Of course it did. I think it would hurt anybody. But I knew that’s what would happen. You get forgotten in there. You’ve got to move on. It pains me, it sucks. I don’t think it’s how it should have been. What can I do? There’s nothing I can do. It’s hard.

She’s gonna continue her journey now. I think that’s what pains me the most about it is that there’s gonna be so many other guys that get to have their moments now and mine was robbed. Mine was genuinely taken away from me. It wasn’t like she chose someone else and I was dumped. Okay, hands up. That’s it, I walk away. I was robbed. I don’t know [if we’ll reconnect]. We’ll see. I’ve got to channel my emotions and move in a way that’s best for me now. And she’s gonna continue her journey.

A lot of fans were calling for you to return to the show during the Casa Amor episodes. Would that be something you’d be willing to do if given the chance?

Get me in there! I’m ready. Send me back in. I’d be a dead man walking. Not only that, but the people that voted for me as well, I’d have to let them know, “What were you doing?” At the time, you’re so in shock, your adrenaline’s going so crazy that I was just more devastated [about my time being] cut short. Then I was thinking of things that I should have said after. I’d go in there, whether it’s Casa or whether, for example, [Hannah and Pepe] are progressing or maybe it becomes a bit shaky. Send me back in. Let’s see if she really still wants to explore the guy that she originally chose because everybody saw that conversation. 

I’d love to get your thoughts on some other things that happened the night of that fateful recoupling. Everyone, including you and Taylor, had such a shocked reaction to Huda and Jeremiah getting split up. Is that something you saw coming? And what do you think about her subsequent crashout?

I always said the downfall of Huda and Jeremiah will be themselves. I think the pressure they were putting on themselves was ultimately breaking them. I’m not surprised that it happened. To be honest, I am not surprised about the crash-out. They’ve imploded. I think they were trying to hold onto something that wasn’t necessarily there. She was getting onto Jeremiah about silly things and I think now he’s going to explore and see that there’s other girls out there.

What do you think about Jeremiah choosing to couple up with Iris instead of Huda? 

He chose to couple up with Iris?

He did!

I haven’t been watching it. It hurts. It’s hard to watch. I don’t want to see it. But good for him. Go on, Jeremiah. Do your thing, mate. Good for him. Go explore Iris, she’s a very good looking girl and she’s very cool. She seems very relaxed. She doesn’t seem like she’d be drama. 

I want to end this interview with the thing I want to know most: what is your guacamole recipe?

Wicked! I love that you brought that up. Listen, it can be simple, right? But we were lacking chili flakes and some real Himalayan salt in there. Maybe a bit of garlic powder as well. You got to mix it up. Maybe I’ll have to bring out my own guac, you know what I mean?  

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

New episodes of Love Island USA air every night (except Wednesday) at 9/8c on Peacock.